Bad Night, Good Day
by DreamWvr73
Summary: MacGyver is feeling sick and Gillian is worried about him, is it the flu or something more serious?


MacGyver was lying in bed in his black pajama bottoms. He didn't feel good, his stomach was bothering him. Gillian came into the room and sat down on her side of the bed. She reached out and touched her husband's head, it felt warm.

"You have a little fever Mac."

"I know, I think I got the flu."

Gillian leaned down and kissed his forehead. "I made a salad for dinner; I don't suppose I can convince you to eat any of it?"

MacGyver sighed. "My stomach tells me no."

"How about some broth then? You have to eat something Mac or you'll feel worse."

"Okay, my stomach should be able to handle that."

"Good." She kissed him on the lips and Mac turned his head away from her.

"Hey you're going to get sick."

"I'll risk it." She gave him another quick kiss before leaving the bedroom to go make his broth.

MacGyver couldn't have been more wrong. His stomach couldn't take the broth, a short time after eating it he got very sick. Gillian was in the bathroom with him. She was rubbing his back; she was starting to get worried about him. He was breathing hard and she put her hands under his arms and helped him get to his feet. "Come on let's wash your face."

She led him over to the sink and turned on the faucet. He scooped some water in his hand and splashed some on his face; he also used some water to wash out his mouth. "Okay, so maybe that broth wasn't such a hot idea."

Gillian got a towel and wiped his face. "Let's get you back to bed."

She turned off the faucet and put him back in bed, she covered him with a sheet. "Mac I'm taking you to the doctor in the morning."

"It's just the flu Gillian I'll be fine."

"No arguments, you're going."

MacGyver was too tired and felt too lousy to protest, he closed his eyes and went to sleep.

It was the middle of the night and Gillian opened her eyes, her stomach was bothering her. She turned towards her husband. She reached out and touched his forehead, he was burning hot. She started thinking about how he was feeling. He had a fever, upset stomach, and when he ate he had gotten sick, she started to suspect something. She carefully pulled back the sheet away from him, she pulled the waistband of his pajamas down a little and touched the right side of his abdomen.

MacGyver's eyes flew open; he reached down and grabbed her hand. "Don't."

Gillian licked her lips. "That hurts doesn't it?"

"Yeah."

Gillian closed her eyes briefly. She knew exactly what was wrong, her heart started beating hard, she got up and walked around to his side of the bed. "Come on Mac, we have to go to the hospital." She reached out and took his wrist.   
MacGyver was not going to argue, he felt worse. He slid his legs over the side of the bed and started to stand. He got a sharp pain that ripped through his side, it was bad and it made him double over. He cried out and put his hand on it. 

Gillian swallowed hard. "Pain?"

"Yeah." He was breathing hard. "This isn't the flu is it?"

She shook her head. "No, I think it's your appendix."

The pain wasn't going away, he tried to get up again but couldn't.  He tried to straighten up and that made it worse, he sat back down on the edge of the bed. "Gillian, I don't think I can walk. You're going to have to call for an ambulance."

Gillian nodded and helped him lay back down. "Just try and relax okay?"

"I'll try." He closed his eyes. "Man it hurts."

She walked around the side of the bed and picked up the phone.

_"Squad 51, man injured 1-0-2-0-4 Sparkleberry Road, 1-0-2-0-4 Sparkleberry Road, cross street Hinkley, time out 00:15."_

Johnny and Roy were in their beds; they pulled up their boots and ran out into the garage. Roy acknowledged the signal and wrote down the address. The two paramedics climbed in the squad and put on their helmets. 

Johnny picked up the paper and looked at the address. "Hey, I know that address, that's MacGyver and Gillian's house. I wonder what happened."

"Well we'll soon find out." Roy started the red truck and put it in gear. 

Gillian opened the door, she saw Johnny and Roy and she gave Johnny a quick hug. "I'm glad to see you Johnny."

"Me too, what happened?"

"I think its Mac's appendix."

The three people walked down and into the master bedroom, Mac opened his eyes and saw the paramedics. "Hey it's Squad 51."

The two paramedics set everything down; Roy was kneeling by the side of the bed. "Hey MacGyver, how are you doing?"

"I've been better Roy."

He nodded. "I'm going to check you over okay?"

Mac was trying not to move too much; even breathing was causing him pain. "Okay."

Gillian climbed onto the bed and took his hand; Johnny sat down beside Gillian and set up the biophone.

"Rampart this is rescue 51, how do you read?"

The voice of Dixie McCall answered him back. _"Rampart here 51, go ahead."_

"We have a male, approximately 40 years old, possible appendicitis, stand by for vitals."

_"Rampart standing by."___

Roy took the blood pressure cuff of Mac's arm and wrote it down in the black book. "Okay Mac your wife said it's your appendix, I'm going to check that area."

MacGyver nodded. "I know." He got a good grip on Gillian's hand, he knew what was coming. 

Roy pressed down on that area, a wave of pain went through him, he squeezed her hand tight and his eyes. 

Roy looked at his partner and nodded. "Yeah it's pretty inflamed."

Johnny took the black book from his partner. "Rampart BP is 100 over 60, pulse is rapid, temperature is up, swelling in the lower abdomen area."

This time it was Kelly Brackett that answered him. _"Understood 51, start IV with D5W, and 5 mg of morphine, transport immediately."_

"10-4 Rampart."

Johnny hung up the phone and got everything he needed to start the IV out of the drug box; he took out the glass bottle and set it down on the bed. 

Gillian was rubbing her husband's hand. "Still hurt?"

Mac nodded. "Every time I move or breathe."

"Don't worry Mac; the morphine will give you some relief."

Johnny moved closer to his friend. Gillian had to let go of his hand, the paramedic turned his arm over and started looking for a vein. "You got good veins, this should be no problem."

Mac smiled. "Good veins? That's something you don't hear everyday."

Johnny found one near the bend in his arm; he took out an alcohol swab and rubbed it on that area. He tore open the package with the needle. "You're going to feel a stick."

MacGyver shook his head. "I'd rather feel a thousand sticks then what I'm feeling right now."

Roy nodded. "Hurts doesn't it? Your appendix has no known function but when it goes bad it's pretty painful. Don't worry you'll be all right."

Johnny sunk the needle into his arm; he set the IV up and secured it with tape. "There that wasn't so bad was it?" He took out a syringe and added the 5 mg of morphine to it.

MacGyver shook his head again. "Didn't even feel it."

The morphine started to kick in right away and he closed his eyes as the sound of a siren got louder.

Gillian was outside of exam room 3. She was pacing, no one had come out to talk to her yet. She was very tempted to go inside and see what was going on with her husband. Finally the door opened, Mac was on a table and was being wheeled down the corridor. Dr. Brackett came out; his hands were in his white coat pocket.

"Where is he going?"

The doctor sighed. "Surgery, he's very sick Gillian we're going to do a laparoscopy and take out his appendix."

The young woman sighed. "I was right."

Kel looked at her. "You were? Are you a nurse?"

"Not officially, but I have a bachelor's in nursing." She cleared her throat. "Dr. Brackett I have a strange request."

The dark haired doctor nodded. "Go ahead."

"Can I be in the operating room?"

He opened his mouth and she put up her hand. "Please, I promise I won't interfere." Kel didn't looked convinced. "All the two of us have are each other."

"He's got no family?"

Gillian shook her head. "And neither do I, please."

Kel sighed. "All right, I'll tell Dr. Holloway she's going to have an unofficial nurse in there with her."

Gillian smiled and kissed the doctor on the cheek. "Thank you."

"You're very welcome."

The unofficial nurse was dressed from head to food in the standard green scrubs. Her long hair was tucked into a surgical cap and her mask was around her neck; it wasn't tied around her face yet. 

Mac had been put in white hospital pants; he had a cap over his head too. Because of the morphine he had been given he kept going in and out of consciousness.

"Gillian…"

She was sitting on a stool beside him, her turned towards him and saw that his eyes were open. They looked glassy, she touched his forehead. "Yeah I'm here."

He was having a hard time keeping his eyes open. "Where are we?"

"Rampart."

"My appendix?"

"Yeah Mac, they're getting ready to take it out."

Mac squinted his eyes at his wife. "Why are you dressed like a celery stalk?"

Gillian laughed; he was talking funny because of the morphine. "We're in the operating room Mac; I have to dress like this because I'm going to stay."

"You're going to stay with me?"

She nodded and he looked very relieved. "Oh good."

The anesthesiologist was named Dr. Hill, she had long blonde hair, she cleared her throat. "Mrs. MacGyver, we're ready to begin."

Gillian's heart was racing, she was scared but she didn't want her husband to know that, she nodded at her and leaned close to her husband. "They're ready Mac; it's time for you to go to sleep now."

Mac gave his wife a small smile. "Can I have a kiss before I go?"

"You know you can." She gave him a small kiss and touched his head. "Go to sleep now Sweetie, you'll be better soon."

"Okay."

Gillian lifted her mask over her face and tied it behind her head.

Dr. Hill had a large syringe; she inserted it into Mac's IV tubing and started injecting the anesthesia. "Don't worry he'll be fine."

MacGyver opened his eyes. He looked at his wife; he got a very warm feeling that started in his arm. "That's warm, are they doing something to me IV?"

That was the last thing he said, he closed his eyes and went to sleep.

Gillian was rubbing her husband's hand; she was watching what was going on. She couldn't see much because of the drape, all she saw was the short woman with the red hair and round glasses that was the surgeon and her nurse. 

Dr. Hill was standing behind Gillian she had put an airway tube down Mac's throat to keep him well ventilated. He had been hooked up to heart monitor, white electrode pads were all over his chest and his sides. There was a blood pressure cuff around his arm; he was hooked to an automatic blood pressure machine that took his pressure every few minutes. Dr. Holloway looked at Dr. Hill.

"How's he doing?"

The very pretty blond woman nodded. "Pressure and pulse are stable, he's doing fine."

"Good, I've almost got it."

Dr. Hill put her hand on Gillian's shoulder and she jumped. "Easy Mrs. MacGyver."

"Sorry, I'm a little tense, call me Gillian please."

The anesthesiologist smiled and stuck out her hand and Gillian shook it. "Jenna." She looked down at her patient. "He's doing really well."

"I know." Gillian took that cap off of his head and smoothed his hair back. 

"How long have you two been married?"

"7 months."

Jenna smiled. "Newlyweds huh, he's cute, you make a nice couple."

It was hard to see behind her mask but Gillian's face had a look of pride on it. "His inside is more handsome than his outside, he's an absolute doll."

Dr. Holloway piped up. "Not from where I'm standing, his insides don't look so good, especially that appendix. Strange little organ, the appendix, you don't need it for anything but it if goes bad it can kill you, odd isn't it? His looks pretty bad, any longer and he would have been pushing up daisies."

Gillian sighed, that was the last thing she needed to hear. "Yeah and no one even knows why it decides to go bad."

"Another odd thing about it." She was finishing up; she put in the last stitch and sighed. "There, I just added my initials."

Gillian had never met a doctor with her sense of humor; she shook her head and started to laugh.

The young woman was sitting in a very uncomfortable chair; she was in the recovery room with Mac. They had taken that white tube out of his mouth and had put an oxygen mask over his face. It was now a little after 3 am; she had put her head down on the railing and had fallen asleep.

MacGyver felt something cold on his face, he slowly opened his eyes and saw fog. He reached up and touched his mouth, he felt the plastic mask and he pulled it off of his face. He looked around, he wasn't sure where he was, he lifted his head and saw a lot of red hair; it had to be his wife. He reached over with his left hand and touched her hair. 

"Gillian…"

The young woman put her head up fast. "Yeah I'm awake."

She looked at her husband and saw his eyes were open, she smiled widely. "Hi."

Mac put his head back down. "Where are we?"

"Recovery room, how do you feel?"

"Sleepy, my throat is sore."

She leaned over him. "That's from the tube. You look much better, you aren't so pale anymore." She touched his face and kissed him, she was very glad he was awake, she sighed out of relief.

Mac yawned and rubbed his face, he felt groggy. "What time is it?"

"I think it's around 3, do you remember much about the last couple of hours?"

"Something about celery."

Gillian started laughing; he looked at her and creased his brow. "What?"

"We were in the operating room you were flying pretty high because of the morphine. I was in my green scrubs and you asked me why I was dressed like a celery stalk."

MacGyver started to laugh a little.

"Uh uh, no laughing, you'll rip your stitches." Dr. Holloway was in the doorway; she walked over to the couple and stuck out her hand to MacGyver. "Regina Holloway, we hadn't been properly introduced; the only thing I officially met was your appendix."

Mac shook her hand as best he could with all of the stuff hooked up to him. "MacGyver."

"Yeah I know, so how are you feeling?"

"Groggy."

"That's normal, it'll wear off soon."

She walked over to him and lifted the sheet; she saw the bandage was still in place. "Any pain?"

"I don't know, I don't feel anything right now."

"Give it some time." 

"How long do I have to stay?"

Regina sighed. "Well normally I would be sending you home right now but because of the condition of your appendix I'd like to keep you here for a while."

MacGyver swallowed hard. "Bad?"

"Well, I could tell you how bad but I think it would scare you. Let's just say you have an excellent sense of timing. I'm going to go arrange for you to be put in a room; I'll come back in the morning and see how you are doing. If everything is going okay we'll talk about some rules you'll have to follow and then we'll send you home."

"Okay, thanks Dr. Holloway."

Regina smiled. "No problem."

She gave Gillian a nod and left the room.

MacGyver and Gillian were in a private room, Dr. Brackett had gotten the young woman permission to stay with her husband, it was well past visiting hours. MacGyver had been taken off of everything except his IV in his right arm; both he and his wife were asleep. 

Gillian had her chair very close to his bed; she had her head down his chest. It was now 6 am and it was breakfast time, Dixie McCall came into the room with a tray. She saw Gillian and gently touched her on the shoulder. She gasped and sat straight up; she saw the nurse and rubbed her eyes.

"Hi Dixie, what time is it?"

"6." She set the breakfast down on the nearby tray. "How's he doing?"

"Good, Regina said he's going to be just fine."

The older woman touched her hair. "How about you? How are you doing?"

"Tired."

"Why don't you go home and go to bed for a while?"

Gillian shook her head. "No, I'm going to stay with him."

The RN nodded. "Okay, I'll be back in a while to get the tray."

"Thanks Dixie."

Dixie nodded and left the room. 

Gillian brought the tray over to the bed; she reached out and touched her husband on the shoulder. "Mac."

His eyes slowly opened. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, its breakfast time and you need to eat."

The mention of food got his attention. "Did you say breakfast?"

"Yeah." She pressed the button on the side of the bed, it started to rise so he could sit up and eat. "Hungry?"

"Starving." She rolled the tray close to him and he lifted it. There was eggs, sausage, hash browns and a biscuit on a plate, there was a small container of orange juice, a container of apple juice and a carton of milk. He picked up the biscuit and started eating it. He closed his eyes and sighed. "That's really good."

"You must be hungry if you think hospital food is good."

"Right now I'd eat a truck if I could get my hands on one."

Gillian started laughing and touched his face. "Well Mac you weren't eating very much over the last couple of days and now that you're feeling better it's catching up with you."

He finished his biscuit and opened his milk. He sipped it, he didn't want to eat too fast. "Did you sleep any?"

"Some, how do you feel? Any pain?"

"A little bit, feels like I got punched in the stomach." He finished his milk and picked up his fork and took a bite of his eggs.

"Don't eat the plate now." Regina was back; she walked into the room and looked at her patient. "How are we feeling this morning MacGyver?"

"Good, really hungry."

She laughed. "Let me guess, appetite was non existent right? It's a good sign. I came to check on your stitches."

He put the lid back on his breakfast and moved the tray aside. "Okay."

Gillian moved back and Regina walked over, she pressed the button on the bed so it would go flat. She lifted the sheet back some and touched the waist band of his pants. "I have to pull them down a little; I'm not being fresh or anything."

Mac gave her a nod. "Yeah I know."

"Just checking." She pulled them down a little and looked at the bandage; she gently peeled off the tape and removed the gauze. There were two small holes on his side; they were so little they only had one stitch in each of them. "They look good, no redness, no puffiness, want to see?"

"Sure."

She took a compact out of her pocket and put it over them; she moved the mirror towards him. "See them?"

MacGyver looked in the reflection and saw two small cuts. "That's it? I thought I was going to have a long cut?"

Regina shook her head. "Nope. There is one more I have to check." She pulled his pants down a little more and looked at his belly button. There was a slightly bigger incision there, it required three stitches. "See here is the other one." She showed him the reflection. "Right in your belly button." She closed her compact. "I did a laparoscopy, it looks like a tube but there is a camera on it, we go inside and take a peek. Then we put in two more tubes and simply suck the bad organ out. It's a lot easier than the big long cut and it has a faster recovery time." She adjusted his pants and pulled the sheet back over him.

"How long?"

Regina nodded. "Okay, let's talk about that."

Gillian started to get up. "Do you want my chair Regina?"

The surgeon shook her head. "No Gillian I'm fine. There are some rules you are going to have to follow MacGyver as soon as I let you go home."

MacGyver nodded. "Okay."

"Rule number one is no heavy lifting, 10 pounds is your limit, if it's heavier than that don't even bother. Rule number two is no strenuous activity, if you want to exercise go for a walk, anything else is too much right now." She cleared her throat. "That also includes the marital kind."

"For how long?"

She closed her eyes briefly; she knew this was going to go over like a lead balloon. "4 to 6 weeks."

MacGyver's eyes got big. "4 to 6 weeks?"

Regina nodded. "I know that's a lot and I'm sorry but you have to recover. There can't be any kind of strain, or pull or pressure of any kind in this area MacGyver, you could tear something or give yourself a hernia."

He leaned his head back against the pillow and covered his eyes. "4 to 6 weeks."

"Hey it could be worse, if we had done the surgery the old fashioned way it would have been two or even three times that."

Gillian shook her head, that _was a long time but then again she wanted her husband to recover. "Don't worry Regina; he'll follow your rules. I'll see to that personally."_

The doctor turned around and looked at her. "Well just don't get too personal." She took a card out of her pocket and gave it Gillian. "Here is my private practice, bring him back in a week and I'll take the stitches out." She turned back around and looked at her patient. "I'll make you a deal, you do everything I said and come see me when it's been 4 weeks. If everything is fine I'll let you off the hook, but if it's not you'll have to go the full 6 weeks, got it?"

Mac uncovered his eyes. "Got it, can I go home now?"

"This afternoon, after lunch I'll check you again then send you home."

"Okay."

"I'll be back later." Regina smiled at him and left the room.

Gillian reached out and touched her husband on the face, he was frowning. "Hey now, a handsome guy like you shouldn't make such a terrible face."

MacGyver shook his head. "4 to 6 weeks, that's a long time to be lazy Gillian."

She touched his chin and turned it towards her. "Hey, I don't care if its 6 months. You're going to do as she says so you can recover with no problems. Besides, she didn't say absolutely no activity Mac she just said no hard strenuous activity. She only said no totally to one thing."

"Yeah, like that's going to be easy."

"No I know for a fact it won't be but like I said, I want you to get better. We'll live."

Gillian moved his tray back to him so he could finish eating. "Here, eat your breakfast." 

Mac lifted the lid on the tray; he picked up his fork and cut into his sausage. "Have you called Pete yet?"

Gillian's eyes got wide and she covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh my God Pete! I totally forgot about Pete!" She touched her black jean shorts pockets and felt for change. She got up from her chair and kissed his head. "You eat your breakfast I'll go call him." She left the room in search of a phone.

Gillian had found the payphone. It was around the corner, she leaned against the wall, playing with the cord between her fingers. The other end of the line was ringing, she was waiting for Pete to answer it; finally it picked up.

"Hello?"

"Pete it's me, I know it's early and I'm sorry but I'm at Rampart General Hospital."

"MacGyver?"

"Yeah Pete, he just got his appendix taken out."

The man on the other end sounded concerned. "His appendix? I thought he had the stomach flu."

"Believe me so did I until I touched it and he nearly hit the ceiling. I tried to get him to the hospital myself and he couldn't even walk. I had to call the paramedics."

Pete sighed. "He's okay though?"

"Yeah, he woke up at 3 from the surgery and we just woke up right now at 6, he's eating his breakfast. He asked about you and in all the confusion and mess I totally forgot to call you Pete, I'm so sorry."

"Don't worry about it Gillian, you had other things on your mind. I'll get dressed right now and drive over. What room are you in?"

"We're on the second floor, room 212."

"Okay, tell Mac I'm on my way."

"Thanks Pete, see you soon."

Gillian hung up the phone and sighed.

She went back into the room and saw that her husband had pushed his tray aside, his eyes were closed. She sat down in her chair and touched his face gently. 

"What did he say?" Mac opened his eyes and looked at his wife. 

"He's on his way." She gave him a tiny kiss. "How are you feeling Honey?"

MacGyver nodded. "Pretty good, the little cuts hurt a little but it's not bad. I've had worse." He saw how weary his wife looked. "What about you?"

Gillian shook her head. "You don't want to know."

"Sure I do, otherwise I wouldn't have asked."

The young woman sighed, he wanted to know. "Mac, the past 6 hours has been the most stressful, terrifying, nerve wracking time I have _ever had in my whole life." She closed her eyes briefly. "I am so worn out, both physically and emotionally, I could cry. I feel so exhausted I could cry like a little girl." _

MacGyver reached out with his left hand and touched her face. "Was it really that bad?"

Gillian wiped her hands down her face and exhaled through them. "You probably don't even remember a lot of it; once they gave you that morphine you were pretty gone. It was so hectic Mac, we rode in the ambulance and you were put in an exam room. You were there for like 10 minutes and then they wheeled you straight into surgery. I had to practically beg Dr. Brackett to let me stay with you; they wanted me to go in the waiting room. Then they put me in that pickle suit and made me sit on this tiny little stool and they told me to sit there and don't move. Do you remember talking to me in the Operating Room?"

"A little, but I don't remember asking you why you were dressed like a celery stalk but I do remember asking you for a kiss."

She nodded. "And then they put you to sleep and Dr. Hill sticks this long white tube down your throat. You had this white thing sticking out of your mouth that looked like the respirator on a scuba tank; it made you should like Darth Vader every time you took a breath. Then she hooks you up to two more machines, so I'm sitting there with all this machinery around me, listening to Darth Vader, trying to stay calm about all this and not get upset. I'm sitting there on this tiny stool holding your hand and I look up and Regina looks at me and says. 'Oh wow _that was a bad appendix! Any longer and he would have died!' I felt like telling her, thanks, that just makes my day complete!" Gillian covered her face with her hands. "I was scared Mac, I've never been so scared. I just want to take you in my arms and hold you tight."_

MacGyver felt bad, his wife had been through a very rough night. "Come here."

He carefully moved over on his bed, making room for her. She wiped her face and walked around his bed to his left side. She sat down on the edge of the bed and swung her legs up onto it. She had to lay on her side. He had his hand on her shoulder and rolled her towards him, she put her head down on his chest. 

"I'm sorry to put you through all that Gillian."

Gillian lifted her head and shook it slowly. "It wasn't your fault, not one bit."

He kissed her head and she laid it back down. "Go to sleep."

"I don't think I can, I'm too tired to sleep Mac."

"Yes you can, just close your eyes."

Gillian could hear the sound of his heart, it gave her a lot of comfort, before she realized it, she was asleep.

Pete got there an hour later; he opened the door and smiled widely at his friend. "Hi."

MacGyver was very glad to see his friend; he put his finger to his lips. He pointed down to his wife, and spoke to Pete in a whisper. "Hey Pete, come on in."

Pete walked over to his friend. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay."

"Well you look better than you did the last time I saw you." Pete was dressed in a maroon t-shirt and black jeans; he had decided to take the day off. He sat down in the chair next to MacGyver's bed. "So what did the doctor say?"

Mac sighed. "No heavy lifting and no strenuous activity for 4 to 6 weeks. She's going to decide at 4 if I need to go the full 6, it all depends on how I do."

"That's good, I'm glad you're okay."

"Me too." He looked down at his wife, he gave her another kiss on the head and he stroked her hair. 

Pete was watching him. "She went through a lot last night Mac."

"Yeah I know, she told me. I feel bad about it."

"You shouldn't, there was nothing you could do about what was going on, you were sick."

"I'll make it up to her when the 4 weeks is over, maybe we'll go somewhere romantic for a few days."

Pete raised an eyebrow; he got his friend's meaning.  "So the strenuous activity also includes…"

MacGyver looked at him and nodded his head. "Yeah, that too."

Pete patted his friend on the shoulder. "Well look at it this way, it'll teach you some patience."

He looked at his friend sideways. "If I want to learn patience I'll built the Eiffel Tower out of toothpicks. The only thing this is going to teach me is the wonderful benefits of cold showers."

Pete couldn't help but laugh. "Come on Mac I think you'll live."

Mac licked his lips and leaned a little towards his friend. "Can I ask you something?"

The stout man nodded. "Of course you can Mac you're my best friend, you can ask me anything."

MacGyver was still stroking his wife's hair; he looked down at her with great affection. "Did you ever have someone that just affected you really strongly?"

"Sure I have."

"That's what Gillian does to me, sometimes by just walking into the room. All she has to do is look at me or smile at me and my heart starts pounding. She can make me so crazy even when she doesn't mean to."

"What about when she does mean to?"

MacGyver shook his head, his face slightly flushed. "She can turn me into putty in her hands in about 5 seconds."

Pete patted his friend on the back. "She loves you Mac, that's why she makes you so crazy." He chuckled. "I'm sure you probably do the same to her."

MacGyver sighed and held her closer. "I hope I do."

Pete had gone to the cafeteria to get something to eat; MacGyver joined his wife in the land of slumber. The door opened and in walked Dixie McCall, she had a lunch tray with her hand and she put it on top of the hospital tray and rolled it close to the bed. She looked at the couple, she thought they looked cute sleeping together on the little bed; she covered them up with the sheet and quietly left the room.

Gillian slowly opened her eyes, she saw the lunch tray and she touched Mac on the chest. 

"Mac, it's lunchtime, you should eat."

He slowly opened his eyes and saw his wife was awake. "Hi, how do you feel?"

Gillian smiled. "Better, a lot better, how long was I asleep?"

"Well Pete got here at almost 8, its lunch time now so about 4 hours."

She rubbed her eyes. "I crashed so hard."

"Yeah you did, you were out like a light."

Gillian lifted her head and kissed her husband gently. "Thanks for making me feel better."

"You're welcome." Mac lifted the tray and saw that it was fish with a baked potato, sour cream, peas, a roll and chocolate cake, there was also some milk and juice. "Looks good."

"Yeah it does, I get the cake though."

"Oh no you don't that's _my cake."_

"Aw come on Mac, let me have the cake."

He shook his head. "No way!" 

Gillian started to pout. "Please?"

MacGyver saw the way she was pouting and he sighed. "I'll let you have _half."_

Her pout was gone in a flash. "Okay."

Regina was back in the room; she was introduced to Pete and kicked Gillian out of the bed so she could examine her patient. Mac's IV had been taken out by the nurse. He felt much better now; the IV had restricted how much he could move around.  
"Okay MacGyver, lie back and relax."

Mac did what she asked, Regina flung the sheet back and pulled down the waistband of his pants. She peeled back the gauze and the tape and looked at her handiwork. "How do they feel?"

"They hurt a little bit."

"Just get some extra strength aspirin for that." Regina was looking at the stitches themselves. "Well everything looks good, no redness or swelling."

"So does this mean I can go home?"

She took some band-aids out of her pocket and carefully put them over the three little holes. "There, that should be more comfortable than that big piece of gauze."

Pete got to see the holes and he couldn't believe how those small they were. "Laparoscopy huh, amazing."

Regina turned around and nodded to Pete. "Yeah it is, makes the recovery a lot easier and almost pain free." She clapped her hands together. "Okay MacGyver, pack your stuff it's time to hit the road."

MacGyver smiled. "Actually I have nothing to pack, they brought me in wearing pajamas. I don't even have a change of clothes or shoes."

"Don't worry about that, I can get you some hospital slippers and I have a spare t-shirt in my office, be right back."

Regina left and came back with a white t-shirt and a pair of slippers. "Here you go, time to get up and out of here."

Gillian put the brown slippers on his feet. "Okay Mac, let's get you up." She put the rails down on the bed and swung his legs around. She sat down beside him and put her arm around his waist. "Ready?"

"Yeah."

"One, two three." Gillian counted to three and they both stood up, his stitches complained. The action caused that area to pull and his legs felt a little stiff from being in bed for so long.

The surgeon watched her patient's face, he cringed a little as he stood. "Did it hurt to stand MacGyver?" 

"Yeah, but that's normal right?"

Regina nodded. "You'll feel that pull for the next day or two but then it'll go away."

Mac put the t-shirt on and pulled it down his chest. "Feels good to get out of that bed."

"Remember what I said and take it easy, I'll see you in a week."

"Thanks Regina."

Gillian nodded. "Thank you so much for taking good care of him."

The doctor smiled. "It was my pleasure, see you later." She waved to them as she left the room.

MacGyver got his stitches out a week later and did what he was told to do. Despite how much he wanted to go for a bike ride or go play hockey he didn't, he stuck to his doctor's orders. He returned to work a few days later much to everyone's surprise, especially Pete. The Director of Operations was willing to give him the 4 weeks off but he said no. When the 4th week came, Mac went back to see Regina, he was sitting in her office waiting to be called. 

The room was decorated with pictures of Indians; the couch looked like it was covered in buckskin. He was reading a magazine about the latest surgical techniques when a young woman that looked to be about 18 opened the office door. She had medium length blond hair and green eyes, she was dressed in a white uniform, holding a file in her hand.

"Mr. MacGyver, can you come with me please?"

He put the magazine down on the couch and stood up; he walked through the door and followed her down a hall that was also covered with pictures of Indians. She led him to a door and opened it. "If you will wait in here Dr. Holloway will be right with you."

"Thank you."

She smiled at him. "You're welcome."

The room was white with a counter and a sink covered with gray tile. There was a white exam table with the butcher paper over it, he hopped up on it and folded his hands in his lap.

Regina came in a few minutes later, the redheaded woman dressed in scrubs with dinosaurs all over them, smiled. "Hello MacGyver, how are you doing?"

He nodded his head. "Good."

"Been doing as I instructed?"

"Unfortunately yes."

Regina nodded. "Well you know what I want to see, so I have to ask you to drop your pants."

Mac could feel his face grow warm, he got down from the table and took off his brown leather jacket and unbuckled his belt. 

Regina saw his red face and she laughed. "Nice shade of red, I bet I can turn your face all sorts of interesting colors before this appointment is over."

"Yeah I bet you could." He took off his jeans and Regina started laughing hard. Her patient had on boxer shorts with hockey pucks on them.

"Well MacGyver I have to tell you that my patients have pulled a few surprises on me over the years but you definitely win the prize. This is the first time I have _ever seen boxers with pucks on them, your wife gave those to you didn't she?"_

Mac could once again feel his face burning. "How'd ya guess?" He tossed his jeans and his jacket onto the nearby chair and got back on the table. 

"Woman's intuition."

MacGyver looked at her. "You know I've never met a doctor quite like you before."

"I know, I have a wicked sense of humor and a large smart aleck mouth. My mother still tells me that to this day."

"I think it's good that you have a sense of humor, so few doctors do."

"Yeah and that's the problem they forget that they are human most of the time." She clapped her hands. "Okay, just lie back and relax." She wiggled her eyebrows at him. "Now its time for fun! Don't worry I won't tell your wife a thing."

Mac lifted his head and looked at her. "Very funny."

Regina only grinned. "I thought so." She walked over to the left side of the table; she lifted up his blue t-shirt. "Shall I buy you dinner before I pull your waistband down?"

This time MacGyver started laughing. "You're all right Regina, nuts but all right."

"I like you too MacGyver, a lot of my patients don't let me joke around with them this much. Okay, time to be serious."

"I doubt that."

"I'm going to pull your waistband down now." She did and looked at the incisions, they were pink. "Hey they're looking good! I should have brought a camera! How do they feel?"

"Fine."

"Don't hurt or anything?"

"Nope."

Regina touched the area gently. "Does that hurt?"

"No."

She checked his belly button one and touched it. "This one?"

"Nope, none of them hurt."

"Good. Okay hockey man, you can redress now."

Mac climbed back down and put his jeans back on. "So what happens now?"

Regina knew right away what he was talking about; she crossed her arms over her chest and smiled. "Oh I see what you are saying; you want me to give you my blessing."

"Well, that's up to you, you're the doctor."

She grinned. "Well I don't know, you _might need those last two weeks." _

MacGyver sat back down on the table. "We had a deal remember?"

Regina sighed. "Okay, okay, we did make a deal and you kept up your end, so yes by all means, go home and ravage your wife. But I do want to see you in 4 more weeks just to make sure you're totally healed, okay?"

Mac smiled at her and nodded. "Okay, thanks Regina."

"No problem MacGyver, see you later."

"Bye." He left the doctor's office and went home.

Gillian came in the door and set her black attaché case down on the top of the couch. It was after 6 and she had stayed at the Foundation a little longer than she wanted to, finishing up a proposal. 

"Mac?"

"In here!"

She heard him call to her from their bedroom. She walked down the hall and went into it. MacGyver was sitting on the bed in a white tank top and a pair of black shorts, his legs were folded under him Indian style. He gave his wife a smile.

"Hi."

Gillian returned it as she walked close to the bed. "Hi, how are you feeling?"

"Good, how was your day?"

"A little hectic but not bad."

Gillian had worn a multi-colored sleeveless shirt that had buttons going down the front and a short black skirt to work. She had put her red hair in a French braid that hung down her back; she took off her heels and tossed them aside. "Ahh that's much better, so what did you do today?"

"Some yard work, a little of this and that."

"Hopefully not too much."

"No not too much." He got off of the bed and stood behind her, he started rubbing his hands down her arms. "Hey, you didn't give me a kiss."

"I just got here." She turned around and gave him a peck on the lips.

MacGyver creased his brow. "You call that a kiss? I think you can do better than that."

Gillian sighed and put her arms around his neck, she pressed her lips against his. Mac put his hands on her back and pressed her against him, he turned it into a much deeper kiss. He reached up and started taking her hair out of the braid.

Gillian was breathing a little hard. "Mac, what are you doing?"

"Nothing."

He took her hair out of the braid and put his fingers through it; he tilted her head back and started to kiss her neck. 

The young woman closed her eyes. "We shouldn't be doing this Mac; you know we aren't supposed to."

"I saw Regina today; she let me off the hook." He gave her another deep kiss and started unbuttoning her shirt.

"She did?"

"Uh huh."

Gillian could feel 4 weeks of unused passion start to come back to her, she ran her hands up and down her husband's chest.  She lifted up his tank top and dropped it on the floor; she leaned forward and touched her forehead to his chest briefly. She looked up at him and smiled. "4 weeks, that's a long time." 

Mac unbuttoned her little shirt and let it slide down her shoulders. "We have a lot of time to make up for." 

Gillian nodded and their lips met in a passionate kiss. They were both breathing hard as they looked at each other; there was love and passion burning in their dark eyes. 

MacGyver walked over to the bed and turned around; he stretched out his hand to his wife.   
"Come here." He spoke in a gentle voice; there was a small smile on his lips that made Gillian's heart start pounding.  She reached out and gently placed her small hand in his, he pulled on it a little and she joined him. They both sat down on the bed and moved towards each other.

Gillian climbed out of bed and got a t-shirt out of her dresser; she slipped it on and went into the kitchen. She got a nice cold bottle of orange juice out of the fridge and brought it back to the bedroom. Her husband was laying flat on his back, the sheet was covering his waist, he was asleep. She climbed back in the bed and pulled the sheet down a little. She was looking at the pink scars, she touched one of them gently. She opened the juice and had a sip. She reached out and was playing with his hair, it had gotten a little long in the 4 weeks since his surgery, it was almost to his shoulders. He had being doing a lot of yard work and the exposure to the sun had turned his hair an even lighter shade of blond.

"Think I need a haircut?" He opened his eyes and turned his head towards her. 

"No, I like it, makes you look pretty sexy."

She handed him the bottle and he sat up and had a sip of orange juice. "Think so?"

"Yeah I do."

Gillian climbed into his lap and hugged him. "I think long hair is very sexy, must be the Indian blood in me."

Mac had another drink of juice and leaned back on the headboard, he sighed. "Must be, but if you like it I won't cut it. This is really going to make Pete happy though."

"Yeah well if he has a problem with it; tell him to talk to me."

Gillian sighed, she was thinking about the night he had his surgery. "You know I think we need to do something nice for Johnny and Roy. They really made me feel a lot better."

"Yeah me too, like what though?"

"How about we invite them over to the house for a cookout? We haven't seen Min or Evan since he was a newborn, and we've never met Roy's wife JoAnne."

MacGyver smiled. "Yeah he's a cutie, okay, we can do that."

Gillian gave her husband a kiss, she sighed. "4 weeks, we're lucky we didn't explode."

Her husband looked at the bed and saw that part of the sheet was pulled off of two of the corners and all of the blankets had been thrown on the floor, the only thing that wasn't was the sheet he had. "Who said we didn't? Look at the bed, we tore it apart."

"Yeah I know but it was worth it, don't you think so?"

Mac nodded. "Definitely, I think I could stay in bed for a week."

"Now that wouldn't be any fun, that's a lot of sleep."

"Who said I was talking about sleep?"

"Oh, my mistake." She gave her husband another kiss; he had just taken another sip of juice. "Ooo an orange juice kiss, I like that."

He stretched out towards his nightstand and put the juice on top of it, he put his arms around his wife. "So when should we have this cookout?"

"How about this weekend? The temperature is going to be in the 70s, we can have it in the backyard."

The backyard was pretty big, the grass was still green and lush despite the fact it was the beginning of fall. Mac had taken a white parachute he had and had pitched it in the backyard like a tent. This provided a nice shaded area that took up a good portion of the yard.  He moved their white picnic table and their card table together and moved all of the dining room chairs outside. 

Gillian came outside, she had on a pair of dark green shorts and a cream colored tank top. She had put her hair in a pony tail, she wanted to see what her husband was doing and saw the parachute.

"Hey good idea."

"Thanks." MacGyver dragged the red grill out of the tool shed. He opened it and checked to see how it was, the inside was nice and clean. "You bought those mesquite chips right?"

"Right."

Gillian noticed his t-shirt was all smudged. "Are you going to change your shirt before everyone gets here?"

"Yeah, putting up the tent got me all dirty."

"You better go then; they should be here in about 10 minutes."

MacGyver started walking towards the house, he heard the doorbell ring and he ran inside and into the bedroom. Gillian rushed inside as well, she looked down at herself, she opened the door and saw her two friends. 

"Hi!" She smiled widely as she opened the door, Min stepped through the door. The young woman had on a pink _SKIDZ tank top and black shorts; Gillian looked her up and down and hugged her._

"Wow Min you look _great you lost more than just your pregnancy pounds didn't you?"_

Min smiled. "Yeah I did and thanks." She also had her hair in a ponytail. "So where is your husband?"

"Changing his shirt."

Johnny was holding Evan and Gillian smiled. "Oh wow Evan you've gotten so big!" She kissed the little boy on the cheek and touched his hands. "How are you doing Johnny?"

She gave him a partial hug as he came inside; he was wearing a black t-shirt that said in big white letters. **MY OTHER CAR IS A FIRETRUCK. **

"Good, thanks. How is MacGyver feeling?"

"Oh he's great."

MacGyver came out of the bedroom. He had changed into a blue t-shirt that Min had given him, it said _SKIDZ, County fun, __California__ style on it. He had on a pair of dark blue shorts and his white tennis shoes. He saw his friends had just come in._

"Hey!" 

Johnny handed the baby to his wife and the two men shook hands. "Hey, how are you doing?"

"Fine, good as new." He saw Min and smiled at her. "Hi Min."

The young woman smiled at him, she saw he was wearing the t-shirt. "Hi, nice t-shirt heard you had some excitement."

Gillian nodded. "Yeah loads of fun."

MacGyver saw the baby and he smiled. "Hey Baby, how are you?" He touched the little boy's hands. "He's really growing."

Johnny nodded. "Yeah he is, he's now 6 weeks old."

"May I?"

Min nodded and handed MacGyver the little baby. "Here you go."

Evan didn't seem to mind, in fact he smiled, Mac laughed. "Aren't you a happy little baby?"

Gillian put her arms around both Johnny and Min. "Come on let's go out in the backyard, I've got refreshments out in a big cooler outside." 

The foursome walked outside and MacGyver gave Min back the baby. "Here's your Mom Evan, your uncle Mac has to go get everything ready to cook."

"I'll be right in to help Mac." Gillian opened the large cooler that was on top of the card table. "This has everything, some beer, soda, water, juice, feel free to help yourselves."

Min and Johnny sat down in two chairs. "Thanks Gillian we'll be fine, go ahead and help your husband."

"Okay, we'll be right out." Gillian went into the kitchen to lend MacGyver a hand.

The couple had taken a few trays of snacks outside; they had ordered a cheese tray, a meat tray and a vegetable tray. MacGyver went back to get the ranch dressing when the doorbell rang. He had been munching on a carrot; he set it down on the counter and went to the door. He opened it and saw Roy and a blond woman.

"Hi." MacGyver opened the door and stepped back. The paramedic stepped inside, he was wearing jeans and a blue polo shirt. "Hi MacGyver, how are you?"

"Good, thanks."

JoAnne came in, she had on a flowered sleeveless sundress and Roy took her hand. "MacGyver this is my wife JoAnne."

MacGyver shook her hand. "Nice to meet you JoAnne."

JoAnne smiled. "Nice to meet you too, I've heard a lot about you."

Gillian came in to see what was holding up the dressing, she saw the couple. "Oh I didn't hear the doorbell." She walked over to the couple. "Hi Roy."

"Hi, Gillian this is my wife JoAnne."

The two women shook hands. "Hi, it's nice to meet you finally."

"Same here."

"If you will follow me to the backyard, we have everything set up out there. Johnny and Min just got here."

JoAnne got excited. "Oh good I haven't seen Evan in a while."

"He's gotten big."

MacGyver got the dressing out of the fridge and joined the party.

The grill was going, the mesquite chips had reached the right temperature pretty fast. Mac had put hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill. He closed the lid and went to get something to drink out of the large cooler. He picked up a bottle of water and drank from it.  The other 6 people were sitting around the table talking and laughing, Johnny was holding his son, feeding him a bottle of formula. 

"So how are things at the Fire Department Johnny?"

The paramedic turned towards his friend. "Good, political as usual, the firemen are supposed to be getting a raise this year and of course the Union reps and the city can't even agree on the coffee they want to drink while they negotiate."

Mac sat down in one of the chairs. "Will the Union call for a strike?"

"I don't know if they would ever go that far but we'll see." Evan was done and Johnny set the empty bottle down and put his son on his shoulder. He patted his back a few times and the baby burped loudly. MacGyver started laughing. "Nice one Evan, are you sure your dad didn't put anything in that bottle besides formula?"

Johnny shook his head. "He gets that from his Daddy. Want to hold him?"

"Sure."

The paramedic passed his son to his friend, the little baby was wearing a white one piece bodysuit and a pair of blue shorts with a baseball on them. Mac put him in his lap and played with his hands.

"Has it been a big adjustment having him?"

Johnny smiled widely. "Actually no, it's like he's been there all along, things have been really easy."

Evan was making all sorts of baby noises; he reached up and put his little fingers around his Uncle Mac's hair. "I see he's found my hair."

"I guess he's used to seeing nothing but dark, your blond hair probably has him curious."

MacGyver gently removed the baby's little fingers from his hair and put it back a little bit. "There we go." He turned and looked at the grill. "I have to go check on the food." He passed Evan back to his daddy. "Here you go Johnny."

Mac got up and opened the lid, the food was still not ready to go, he flipped everything over. Evan started to cry and this got the attention of his mother. "We should have brought the swing with us Johnny, you know how much he likes that."

Johnny nodded. "Yeah we should have, I didn't even think about it."

MacGyver walked back over to the table. "What's wrong?"

Min looked up at her friend. "Evan likes to be in his swing about this time and we didn't bring it with us."

"Need a swing huh? Okay be right back."

Mac went into the house; Johnny handed the baby to his mother and followed him. "You have a swing?"

"No, but I'm sure I can find something to fake it with." Mac was in the garage. There was some brand new shelves up and he took his small black backpack down and handed it to Johnny. "Hold this will ya?"

"Sure."

MacGyver picked up some rope and a toilet seat he also had on the shelf. He opened it and took the back pack from Johnny. 

"A toilet seat? What are you doing?"

"Can you hand me that roll of duct tape over there hanging near the door?"

Johnny walked over to the door, he saw a fat roll on a nail and took it down, he handed it to his friend. "Here."

"Thanks."

MacGyver opened the lid and put the backpack against it, he took the tape and wrapped it around the two items until he was satisfied they were secure. He cut the tape and set it aside; he picked up the rope and started looping it around the seat, feeding it over and around the hole.

Gillian was minding the grill, she turned everything over and closed the lid, Mac came out holding his creation and she creased her brow. "What is that?"

"A swing."

Between the grill and the tables was a large tree, Mac had put the parachute around it, he handed Johnny his swing and climbed into the tree. "Can I have that rope Johnny?"

Part of the rope was attached to the toilet seat; Mac took the rest of it and securely tied it around a thick branch several times. He pulled it on a little to make sure it was secure, he jumped down.

"Okay that ought to do it, time for a test drive."

Mac unhooked the straps for the backpack; he walked over to Min and held out his arms. "Can I borrow Evan?"

Min didn't know what to make of what was hanging from the tree. Nevertheless she knew that MacGyver would never do anything to hurt her son, she passed him the baby. "Here you go."

"Don't worry he'll be fine."

"Oh I know that."

MacGyver handed his son to Johnny. "Okay Johnny, lean him back against the backpack while I strap him in."

"Okay." Johnny did as he asked.

The backpack had two sets of straps; Mac criss crossed them over the little boy's chest and made sure they were secure but not too tight. He hooked the other two around his little waist and adjust the tension so it was just right. "Okay Johnny let him go."

Johnny let go of his son and he was sitting up, Mac touched the little boy's hands. "Okay big guy, I know this thing isn't as nice as your swing at home but it should do the trick. You're going to have to trust your Uncle Mac."

The little baby seemed all right and this made Mac smile. "Good, okay let's see how it works."

He got behind the backpack and gave it a gentle push, it started swinging slowly; the little baby started to laugh. Johnny smiled widely. "Hey I think he likes it."

Gillian was watching all of this, she shook her head. "Nice going."

"Thanks, how's the food?"

"Almost done."

Everyone ate their fill and stayed outside and talked and had a great time until it got dark. The party broke up at 8 and Mac and Gillian decided the clean up would wait until morning. Gillian had gotten out of the shower and had put on her pajamas; they were a teal set of shorts and a tank top. She had brushed out her hair and put in a loose ponytail. 

MacGyver came out of the bathroom drying his hair; he had a towel around his midsection. 

"That's much better, I smelled like smoke."

"One of the hazards of barbequing, you smell like a smoked ham when it's over."

He sat down on the bed and finished drying his hair. "Think everyone had fun?"

"Yeah I think so."

Mac got up from the bed and opened his dresser drawer; he took out a pair of grey shorts and slipped them on. He put the towel back in the bathroom. "Evan's gotten big hasn't he?"

"Yeah he's growing fast." 

Gillian was watching her husband, she noticed how much he seemed to enjoy holding the little baby and playing with him. "Mac, did you have a lot of fun with Evan today?"

Her husband was brushing his hair; he finished and turned towards her. "Yeah, why?"

Gillian shrugged. "Well it's just that, I mean, have you given any thought to maybe one day."

MacGyver knew what she was getting at. "Yeah I've thought about it, especially around Evan."

"What do you think about that?"

Mac put his brush down and sat down on the bed. "I think that if it happens then that would be a good thing but I don't think we should make any plans. Just let Mother Nature take its course and let the chips fall where they may. But I want you to know that either way I'm happy."

Gillian touched his hand and nodded. "Okay, I just wanted to know."

Mac smiled at her and gave her a small kiss. "Did you have fun today?"

"Yeah I did, you did a great job grilling, those mesquite chips were a good idea."

"It's better than charcoal and less polluting."

Gillian shook her head. "Now how did I know you were going to say that?"

MacGyver shrugged. "You know me pretty well."

"Yeah I do."

She put her arms around her husband and gave him a hug. He was nice and cool still from the shower, she sighed and held him tight.


End file.
